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' In The Times Literary Supplement, David Wheatley calls Robert Adamson "one of the finest Australian poets at work today." NET NEEDLE brings together the presiding influences of his life, early and late. He casts an affectionate eye on the Hawkesbury fishermen who "stitched their lives into my days," childhood escapades, lost literary comrades, the light and tides of the river, and the ambiance of his youth. Throughout, he is characteristically attuned to the natural world, sketching encounters both intimate and strange. These are poems of clear-eyed vision and mastery, borne of long experience, alert and at ease. As Michael Palmer observes, "Eye and ear, none better." ' (Publication summary)